


It Took Time

by Firewins



Series: The Kids Are Not Alright [2]
Category: The Umbrella Academy (TV)
Genre: F/M, M/M, Pseudo-Incest, Reginald Hargreeves' A+ Parenting, the Hargreeve children, their childhood was a mess
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-25
Updated: 2019-04-25
Packaged: 2020-01-31 13:31:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 510
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18592234
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Firewins/pseuds/Firewins
Summary: It took the Hargreeve children quite some time to realise that siblings shouldn't be in love.





	It Took Time

It took the Hargreeve children quite some time to realise that some things they did were taboo. Like the little giggles and secret handholding between Luther and Allison or why Klaus and Ben would hideaway from the rest of the kids and exchange the intimate whispers of scared children who found safety in each other or Vanya’s insistence on leaving the lights on for five in the desperate hope that he would return, long after the rest of the siblings had given up. Each child realised at different ages that this was not what normal families did.

Vanya was first, she had more freedom to study normal life as the ordinary one. She read books while the others trained and observed from the sidelines as her siblings were interviewed by the few reporters their father allowed. As she studied Oedipus during the lessons Grace gave. And as she heard the rumours that her siblings were too busy to know about. The whispers about Allison's locket, The questions about photos of Klaus and Ben holding hands and standing just a bit too close to each other for boys of their age. Vanya adapted the best understanding and ignoring her siblings' intimate relationships. She even preserved a few family secrets when she published Extra Ordinary.

Klaus realised next, ever the trouble maker he saw the reaction of reporters and the carefully blank expressions when he answered fluff questions a little too truthfully. Unlike Vanya, he revelled in teasing the reporters saying just enough that it could still be passed off as a joke or him being high.

Alison was 15 when she realised that there were more reasons to keep the secret smiles and whispers in the night hidden than just Reginald's strictly scheduled recreational time. As her acting career took off there were more reporters and less free time to spend with Luther she drifted away to maintained her perfect Hollywood image.

No one was quite sure when Ben realized. When he started to be more subtle with his intimacy with Klaus, When he started to avoid certain subjects in interviews, while Klaus revelled in scandalizing the reporters with his answers. And when he withdrew from Klaus, hiding his feelings in whatever deep dark place the monsters resided in.

It was less complicated for Diego, simply a matter of ignoring his siblings discomfort in interviews when asked if there anyone special in their lives or pretending that he didn’t notice when Alison stopped wearing the locket that Luther gave her, or when Ben started to spend his time alone instead of hidden somewhere with Klaus, or when Vanya finally stopped leaving the lights on at night.

It took Luther much longer. Reginald's favourite, Number One, too loyal to leave with the others as one by one they escaped. He realised slowly, as Alison moved on and took off the locket, as she dated other young actors and made teen magazine headlines, as she married Patrick, and as she lived her life. Luther understood what his siblings had realized long before him.

**Author's Note:**

> Gotta thank Aidan Gallagher for making me kinda ship Vanya and Five.


End file.
